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Tag: Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

  • This is the digital space… fast, evolving, driven by the masses, if it's good it will sell online, writes Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

    The Anchor: 5 Emerging Trends In Digital Media

    By Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

     

    Funny that what is emerging today can become passe in couple of years, if not less. But that’s the digital space… fast, evolving, driven by the masses, if it’s good it will sell online. So if you had to look at the near future, and that’s just planning for the one year ahead, then here are 5 things that seem to be quietly brewing in the various nooks and corners of the wireless world – the Internet.

     

    #1 Mobile Internet: Don’t underestimate the power of mobile internet.  The number of people accessing the web on their phones is much more than those accessing via desktops/laptops. Mobile is very quickly but surely changing data consumption, infotainment, social connectivity. http://blog.bcwebwise.com/2012/06/08/web-internet-and-mobile-internet-usage-statistics-india-2011/.

     

    #2 Social is Going Visual: There is a lot of visual content out there, with the exception of twitter and LinkedIn where the visuals are yet to come of age primarly given the interfaces of these networks. Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest… its all about visual content that is getting shared  — images, videos — impressive compelling content that is engaging. Everyone is sharing and adding their viewpoint to these visual treats. Brands out there need to build their visual content quickly and smartly understanding that branded content will not be shared.

     

    #3 Digital AdSpends Unleashed: Even as a few homegrown giants have recognized the power of the digital media, and are slowly and surely increasing digital spends, most multinational players have mandates from their global headquarters to go digital. Indian arms are being questioned why their digital spends are less than 1 per cent of total ad spends. And CMOs are being forced to get involved in learning the digital ropes and diving deep into the digital waters themselves.

     

    #4 Digital Workshops: How can one increase spends when there is little knowledge to cope with the medium. Digital workshops within large MNCs are the order of the day. Indian corporations should ideally take a lesson or two and get their top line marketing and sales people, the decision makers to hone their digital acumen.

     

    #5 TV v/s Digital – Push v/s Pull : For the fence sitters still smug about TV reach v/s Digital reach – think about the 80:20 rule. That 20 which is the cream of your business is on the web, and they never were much influenced by TV advertising and even more so today. They are researching online, no matter where they are buying products from. It is all about peer to peer recommendation, perception, and information you have put out about your brand online, and how quickly you can respond to individual customers.

     

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer is Founder-MD at BC Web Wise Pvt. Ltd

     

  • Marketers talk about the large number of fans they have acquired on FB, so what do these number of fans mean to them and how are the marketers leveraging these fans?

    The Crucial Social Media Question: Have fans? Now what?

    By Tuhina Anand

     

    Every marketer worth his salt wants his brand to have a presence on social media. However, the truth is that the marketers are still trying to figure how to navigate this medium.

     

    Having heard that it’s a ‘cost effective medium, can be tracked and is ‘the’ medium’ where the customers hang out, the marketer obviously wants to be there too. But the social media still has a long way to go before it is seen as the ‘vehicle of choice’ and not just as an afterthought.

     

    Yes, one agrees that marketers are warming up to the medium but they are still testing waters barring a handful who have taken the medium wholeheartedly.

     

    Once a marketer decides to go on social media, the next move is to create a presence on Facebook and maybe on Twitter. We have often heard the marketers talking about the large number of fans they have acquired on FB, so what do these number of fans mean to them and how are the marketers leveraging these fans to engage effectively with consumers?

     

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer, Founder and Managing Director, BC Webwise agrees that there is peer pressure to acquire more fans and clients often bow to that demand: “The number of fans and likes is a visible number, hence one can’t write it off completely even though many of the numbers could be dormant fans. These numbers are an opportunity to engage those fans in a meaningful way to create brand loyalty and brand recall.”

     

    She added: “Two years back, the common demand of a client was to be on Facebook, but we have seen a shift now where they have realized that it’s not the ultimate answer but social media too needs a 360 degree approach.” So it’s clear that there are different kinds of marketers and the early adopters are clearly asking the right kind of questions.

     

    Some of the brands that have effectively used the communities on FB are Fastrack, Café Coffee Day, Sunsilk while more are getting on the engagement bandwagon. Explaining the significance of the numbers, Rajiv Dingra, CEO, WATConsult, said: “While all readers of an ad do not become buyers of the product, similarly with FB, the marketers become a publisher of its page to reach out to the consumers. The aim is not always conversion to transaction for all people on its FB page, but with a large fan base the number of potential buyers definitely increases.”

     

    Mr Dingra is clear that there is no replacement for good content. He added that the numbers might reflect various objectives of a brand at different points, but if the content is good, the engagement with brands will become only much more involved and meaningful.

     

    Vineet Gupta

    Vineet Gupta of 22feet has been relentlessly engaging with brands to enable them to use their social media tools effectively. He explained: “We have brought out exclusive sale for Fastrack fans on FB and the brand has been doing a lot of stuff exclusive to the community. Scale has its own benefit and one can’t deny that. With people becoming familiar with social media, there are lots of activities happening which take people beyond the likes and the fans.”

     

    The agency has recently done activation for Lee titled ‘Shadows of City’, where people were encouraged to present their photographs of the city and the shadows they create which would then be put up in the stores.

     

    CCD is another brand that has been using FB to listen to its customers and also engage them via the medium. Ramakrishnan K, President- Marketing at CCD elaborated: “At CCD, we not only have numbers, but also a high level of engagement. Our fan base is 2.6 million and our monthly engagement level is 60 per cent, i.e. 60 per cent of our fans interact in some form with our page every month.”

     

    He added: “At CCD, we use social media base for regular tailor-made communication on happenings in CCD. We have a direct consumer feedback on cafes across the country which gives us instant information that keeps us on our toes. Most importantly, we use the fan base for co-creating many of our offerings – be it new menu, suggestions for improvement, live tasting of new introductions, choice of music among others. We engage fans to co-create their brand. As a result, we drive a very high level of consumer engagement, which in turn helps us drive sales.”

     

    One concern is that many fans on FB might be dormant, so then do the numbers really mean anything? Sanjay Mehta, Joint CEO at Social Wavelength explained: “I think that the key is to deliver message to interested people. If people receive the message but not respond, that is not a concern, but if they do not get the message in the first place, then it’s a bigger challenge. I think one should not be dismissive of the dormant numbers, but focus more on getting the right kind of messages that will get them to engage.”

     

  • Presenting the first of our half-yearly reviews where we asked industry captains to tell us how the first six months of 2012 have been

    The Half-Year That Was

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    It’s July 2 today, and the first six months of the year have passed. While the slowdown has impacted spends in a major way, most of the 182 days from Jan to June have been eventful. On the positive side: new television channels, new agencies – media and creative, consolidation, people and account movements, government issues, digitization, awards… the list could go on. And on the negative: a channel being shut, pink slips, pay cuts, appraisals deferred, digitization delayed… the list could go on here too.

     

    We have already embarked on the second half of the year, but as we do that, here’s a quick look at how industry captains review the half-year. We present you the half-yearly review in two parts… the first today and the second mid-week… on Wednesday.

     

    As you would gather, there is much gloom in the industry, though no despair. Not yet.

     

    ADSPENDS:

     

    Nagesh Alai, President, Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) & Executive Director, India Operations, Draftfcb Ulka Group

    Nagesh Alai

    If I were to summarize the indications of the economy, then one has seen softness beginning last November and December leading to a situation of downturn. The macro-economic indications like rupee falling, impact in production and fall in demands have also reflected in the consumer behaviour in a negative way. The last quarter of 2011-12 (Jan-March) has seen a fall in GDP to 5.3 per cent. All this have impacted the manufactures as well as service providers, with the mood being that of postponing a decision. While some would have thought that the situation would not impact FMCG, but that one has seen a resistance from that sector too.

     

    So in terms of advertising, the impact being in terms of ad outlays and remuneration; while the latter has been up for constant negotiation and any further would only impact the quality of service being provided, it’s the latter that is being hit now. I think this year one would see a growth of maximum 10-12 per cent as compared to 14-15 per cent in the past. While print and TV still comprise 80 per cent of the spends, but advertisers are looking at newer mediums, where the spends is not high and get better mileage for monies being spent.

     

    I personally believe that even if government were to take corrective measures, one will only begin to see the recovery by mid-2013. The mood can be aptly summarized as being that of cautious approach.

     

    PRINT:

     

    Narendra Kumar Alambara, COO, Thanthi Group

    Narendra Kumar Alambara

    In terms of the regional publications, I would say that the past six months have been good and bad. If one looks at readership and circulation, the regional dailies have seen an increase vis-à-vis the English language publications. However, there is a need to be bold and unconventional when it comes to regional publications, both by those selling this space and advertisers themselves. In today’s time when every paisa has to be accounted for in terms of returns, I think regional publications would have been an excellent answer to have targeted reach because of the value they provides for the money and reach.

     

    However, we have failed to do that. Today when most media houses are not restricted to being uni-dimensional and have different platforms for advertisers be it television, print, digital and even regional newspapers and channels under their umbrella; I think the solution lies in integrating various offerings, including the regional to get a better value and growth.

     

    Krishna Prasad, Editor-Outlook

    It’s difficult to put a number as yet on the kind of growth that has been witnessed, but you will always see print being challenged by television and other mediums. As far as the past six months are concerned, I would say the growth of print has been at par. By this I mean that even though most advertisers have huge monies, they are shying away from advertising with this medium. This is somewhat similar to what was observed during 2008, where companies didn’t have any reason to opt for cost-cutting, but were up for it. Many advertisers are seeing this downturn as a reason to go easy with their spending and not be too extravagant.

     

    Most newspapers today, especially in Delhi like Delhi Times, Hindustan Times and others appear chunky in their appearance, which gives you a sense that all is well but that may not necessarily be the case. Most of them are actually going slow with their spending and are trying to play it safe. I expect things to look better from October onwards – around the festival period. So largely, the growth of media will be dominated by how the economy transforms itself; it’s not operating in a vacuum. That’s the best case scenario.

     

    But the worst case scenario is that it may take a little bit longer for things to get better; perhaps with the elections coming up soon, with the country seeing a new Finance Minister and the markets going topsy-turvy, the print industry may still take some time to stabilise itself.

     

    RADIO:

     

    Prashant Panday

    Prashant Panday, CEO, Radio Mirchi

    The radio industry has been hit just as hard as any other segment. Maybe a little less than print and a little more than TV. The economic slow-down and the policy freeze has made advertisers a little wary. They are not exactly cutting spends, but they are demanding more from broadcasters. A broadcaster can either cut prices or offer more for the same. In some sectors, the advertising cut has been more severe like telecom, real estate and so on. But there are other segments that have done better – like core retail, and even auto.

     

    Given the economic conditions, and the lack of new frequencies, radio has done as well as it possible can.

     

    Rabe T Iyer

    Rabe T Iyer, Business Head, BIG FM

    The last financial year was alright, but the last three months have been pretty flat. The reason for that is because categories like BSFI, Auto and some of the campaigns of the usual summer categories were a bit slow. Nevertheless, we expect the next three to six months to be a good run. This is because people ultimately want to keep their goods moving, and hence the next three to six months are going to be good. The last three months were flat for the industry because the dollar exchange hit the sentiments and some categories which were expected to fire up in the month of May-June have taken some more time, mainly because of the overall economy conditions and the sentiments attached to it, and also because of the fluctuating dollar prices. This has directly impacted the ad spends, not just on radio, but across the portfolio on media brands.

     

    Ashit Kukian

    Ashit Kukian, COO, Radio City

    The last six months has been very good for the radio industry. One of the reasons I would say is because the core advertising categories in radio namely: Telecom, FMCG, and Entertainment channels to name a few, had increased their advertising spends on radio.

     

     

    DIGITAL:

     

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer, CEO and MD, BCWebWise

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

    More and more brands are getting ready to seriously look at digital media and those who have been using it already, are increasing their spends. Digital is expected to deliver more cost-effectively. Amazingly, even production charges of films are expected to be cheaper, if they are being produced by digital agencies. It would help if brands which see real value in digital and see it delivering, also realize that results won’t come if they tighten their purse strings so much. Fortunately, there are a few clients who have realized the quality v/s quantity value and are waking up to the real digital age and extending their budgets.

     

     

    Rajiv Hiranandani

    Rajiv Hiranandani, Co-founder and Executive Director, Altruist, Mobile2win

    I think the mobile industry has underperformed in last six months, as per the overall outlook was supposed to be, in terms of number of handsets sold and amount of value-added services (VAS) consumed. Mobile industry has seen its slowest growth, and this has been also because of the negative outlook in the economy. Some of the reasons have been people waiting for better handsets models, the overall mood of economy not being good, and mobile VAS seeing a lot of restrictions in terms of TRAI guidelines.

     

     

    OOH:

     

    Noomi Mehta, Chairman and Managing Director, Selvel One Group

    Noomi Mehta

    The last six months have not been good for the out-of-home (OOH) industry. The month of June, however, has seen a significant improvement, which is perhaps because the IPL campaigns in the months of April and May have fructified. Otherwise, I believe, the industry figures have been down. The markets, by and large, seem to be in a depressed state, along with the economy. Going forward, one of the basic steps needed to improve the industry’s performance is the need for a common currency for measurement. OOH is part and parcel of the country’s economy, and hence it will also be subject to the same pressures as the economy.

     

     

    Image: Rafiq

     

  • It has an unbeatable thrill, the sort you get when you are playing a game and want to achieve higher scores.

    The Anchor: 7 points to learn from being in business

    By Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

     

    #1 That you are on your own; and you get your pay package based on how well not only you but your entire team works.

    #2 That how much you earn is dependent not only on how hard and how well you work but can fluctuate drastically with how the market, the competition and the client operate. You have no one to complain to, or another job to switch to.

    #3 That while it is not as easy or as fun as ‘being the boss’ appeared  when I was an employee, it has an unbeatable thrill, the sort you  get when you are playing a game and want to achieve higher scores.

    #4 That the challenges are only more exciting and tougher as you move ahead because the goal post just keeps moving forward.

    #5 That the success of any business is completely dependent on the business owner’s vision, drive and focus and this then helps to drive the quality of team members they can retain and attract, and the level of ownership that team members have towards their jobs.

    #6 That every department is critical for the success of an organization, be it admin, HR, production, strategy, etc… every link is critical.

    #7 Nothing can change the fortunes of a company than the ultimate truth   for any business, the acid test, which is customer experience through the product and service it offers. This means know the customer, know the market, continuously improve your offering, delivery and service.

    You simply have to be the best, the most preferred.

     

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer is the Founder-MD of BC Web Wise.

  • …but the winners made me believe in advertising and communications once again, writes Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

    Spikes Sidelights | Not a spectacular night

    By Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer

    Finally, the grand evening, the Awards Night for Spikes Asia at the Esplanade Theatre. I must admit the evening was not as spectacular as I thought it would be. It was a laundry list of awards being given out. But the highlights were, as it should rightly be to see the presentations and films for the Gold and Grand Prix winners. That I must say, almost all of them made me believe in advertising and
    communications all over again. It was fascinating to see some awesome craft and design work in particular. They did let the imagination take leaps and bounds.

    It felt very good whenever `India’ won something and whenever any Indian walked up on stage. It felt good to see Samsonite win the Advertiser of the year award and an `Indian’ who was the Asia-Pacific head, Dr Ramesh Tainwala of the Tainwala Group that Samsonite has its joint-venture with, walk up on stage to receive the award.

    A simple man, simply dressed, humble to say he is not used to it, and who said the best of things any agency, in this case JWT, would love to hear, and ensured that the Indian arm Contract got a mention too when he was up there on stage. That speaks volumes about the person, and I guess a reason why Samsonite is such a big success in the region, they got the best partners in India.

    I skipped the party thereafter at a place called `Indo Chine’ I think, hosted by Leo Burnett. Thought I would catch an early nights nap, for we leave the hotel tomorrow morning at 7 a.m for the airport, and that is 4.30 am India time.

    Signing out from Spikes Asia… thank you, it was fun and a great learning opportunity in many ways.

     

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer is founder-managing director, BC Webwise

  • Spikes Sidelights | No random networking

    By Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer
    It was an insightful weekend at the Mandarin Oriental Singapore reviewing some of the best works from across Asia. But before I get to that, let me say that the dinner on the evening before we actually sat together to review the work, helped to get together and know one another, be familiar with the professional backgrounds to set the pace of views and reviews that would be relevant over the next two days.

    Rather than an informal dinner setting I appreciated how Spikes Asia had organized a sit down dinner where each jury was assigned their table to group together with their co-members. So there was no random networking, and no one was left out of the conversation. It was a very
    productive dinner so to speak.

    The next two days we started really early, well yes by Indian Standard Time, it was a 6 a.m. Fortunately I was able to be wide awake for the prospect of reviewing work with people across the Asian region was definitely exciting, plus to have anyone from Crispin Porter + Bogusky to chair the meet was an equally if not more exciting prospect. And Jeff Benjamin, chief creative officer CPB, the jury chair, was someone I did learn from over the last two days. I was humbled of course by the kind of work that rest of Asia is producing. And yes, barring an idea or two, saw how far away we in India are from thinking beyond getting the basic’s right, executing great ideas, and presenting stuff in a manner that can capture the juror’s attention.

    We had some fun during the day of course. There was the jury photo shoot where the jury chair more than we women on the jury was concerned about the effect of blowing wind and his flying hair, and well, when a couple of guys decided that the silence from the next jury room was killing. So a `help me’ note was slipped under the door, a lot of sound effects were created so it would get noticed and we get some reaction, but the note was totally ignored :P.

    Finally the day was over. We finished with champagne by the poolside last evening after we had finally decided on the metals. It was refreshing. Jeff ordered some Singapore Sling shots, to top it, and that was a nice lift to the end of the day.

    Hope to catch up on the some of the sessions today at the Festival, and some of the after dark parties organized by some of the agencies here in Singapore this evening.

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer is founder and managing director, BC Web Wise